FAYETTEVILLE — Isaiah Campbell produced 11 strikeouts in seven innings of work as the No. 10 Arkansas Razorbacks shutout the Missouri Tigers 2-0 in the Southeastern Conference opener Friday night at Baum-Walker Stadium.
The redshirt junior picked up his third consecutive game of six or more innings and 10 or more strikeouts, becoming the first Arkansas hurler since 2017 when Trevor Stephan accomplished the same feat.
“I thought he was really good in the middle of the game,” said Razorbacks coach Dave Van Horn. “The fourth, fifth, sixth, those were his best innings. Just obviously throwing a lot of strikes, locating that fastball in and away, both sides of the plate. He had a couple of innings in there, maybe the fifth and the sixth, where he utilized his cutter a little more and his changeup and got a couple of quick ground balls. It seemed like he had them all rolling tonight.”
Campbell led an effort from the Hogs pitching staff that allowed just two hits, three walks, and fanned 15. Jacob Kostyshock and Matt Cronin allowed a baserunner each. Cronin picked up his fifth save of the season and has had either a win or a save in six of his last seven appearances in 2019.
“It’s just a Friday night in the SEC,” said Campbell. “We’re going to get their best on the other side. For me, I just got to take it one pitch at a time, and when I take it one pitch at a time, you just can’t dwell in the past if I’m getting behind on counts and stuff, and that’s just what I did tonight. It paid off really well.”
The Hogs open up SEC play with a win for the third straight season. It is the first time since 1992 when Arkansas shutout Georgia that the Razorbacks have opened up conference play with a shutout.
Game two is set for a 2:00 p.m. first pitch Saturday at Baum-Walker Stadium. Catch the action on Caddo Country Radio 98.9 FM and 670 AM with pregame at 1:30 p.m.